Slugterra Special Happy 18th Birthday
by wenjing10
Summary: Today is my birthday, and this year, I am turning 18! Khai and my friends are preparing the best birthday party (also the biggest) for my special day. Meanwhile, Khai's pet, Fairy and the other pet animals are planning another surprise for my birthday. With tons of presents, food and performances as surprises for me, I have no idea what's next for me!
1. Chapter 1

So, since my birthday is coming, as suggested by FoxyKhai0209, we decided to make a special story for my 18th birthday in Slugterra. Most of the ideas are made by her, but I add some of my ideas too to make it interesting.

Note: There will be spoilers of My Life in Slugterra, Team Phoenix, and other special short stories of Slugterra.

Enjoy!

Note: With the suggestion and help of FoxyKhai0209, I have separated the story into a few chapters.

* * *

It has been around half a year since the Emperor's defeat, and The Eastern Caverns is slowly regaining its beauty and peace similar to the time before the Emperor's reign. No, even better than the past. We have set a mark in history. With the help of allies from other sets of caverns like The 99 Caverns, Marinatopia and Belliggera, our relationships with them strengthen and we get to learn many things from each other.

With the Prophecy of the Phoenix fulfill, Junjie and I become the new Rulers of The Eastern Caverns. Junjie is being called as the Dragon, or Draco by the European minorities. On the other hand, I am being called as the Phoenix, or sometimes Fiery Phoenix by other people. I am really surprised to rise from nobody in the Surface to a great noble ruler. I do not expect that! I am struggling to get used to this sudden new status in my life, but Junjie, Master Lian and the Guardians of the Eastern Caverns help me to settle down.

Moreover, since the defeat of the Emperor, I have moved into Junjie's family and I am now living in Peach Blossom Spring Cavern. I am guilty for moving away from my family, but Khai manages to convince them with the help of Skylar Jayden Reyes. Later, I feel very happy, happier than before because of Junjie's family, including Master Lian and Hamengku though they are not blood-related. They are very kind and loving, willing to teach me anything with patience. In these months, I have learned to be independent, to cooperate with others, and to love.

Today is July 17, and it is my birthday! But this year is special to me. I am turning 18 this year! I am going to be a lady and officially a young adult! Early in the morning, everyone in Peach Blossom Spring Cavern are decorating the cavern with colorful balloons, streamers, and a banner for my 18th birthday! Khai is super excited about my birthday today since I am her close friend and she has over focused about the plan that she made for my birthday. Everything should be perfect!

Elke and Kord, the two Cave Trolls from Team KHEI and the Shane Gang, have set up the food on a long table. The Limax, Kalt, and Chaleur Gangs are setting up their band for the party. Annie, using her gifted ice magic, has made plenty of ice statues of the members of Team KHEI, the Shane Gang and everyone who is our ally. Dong Song, the ice lover in Team Phoenix, and Anastasia, the North Guardian are helping Annie out. Annie also creates an ice skating ring for everyone to skate. Her long platinum blonde waist-length hair is let loose and is tied into a French braid, letting it sweep over her right shoulder. She wears a bright blue shimmer glittering cocktail, a snowflake hairclip on her left side of her head, her snowflake necklace and bright blue kitten heels that was made out of ice. Khai checks everything to make sure everything's perfect. Pronto is looking eagerly at the huge ice cream cake, which is red in colour with larkspurs, vines, and leaves decorations. He is about to taste it in one bite but Ilys, the Molenoid tracker in Team KHEI grabs the back of his shirt and scolds him. Jia, Junjie's younger twin sister is on the ladder. She ties five colorful balloons on one of the cherry blossom trees. She is about to climb down the ladder but she suddenly loses balance. Jia falls but her boyfriend, Yuuki Aihara catches her in time. She thanks him and gives him a kiss on the cheek. Jie, Junjie's younger twin brother is checking the cupcakes to make sure they are 2000 in total. The cupcakes are set to surround the cake.

Khai rechecks a lot to make sure everything is perfect. Master Lian comes up to her and tells her, "Everything is all set and there is no need to worry." However, Khai is still worried if something happens that may ruin my special birthday. Then Master Minami Kaido, her master arrives and assures Khai that it is going to be fine and nothing is going to happen. Her words manage to convince her. When she turns around, she sees Aurora, the Snow Girl created by Annie is eating the cake!

"Aurora! What are you doing?!" Khai asks her in shock.

Aurora spins around and reveals her lips to be covered in red frosting. "I'm not eating cake…" she lies.

Annie walks up to her "Oh, Aurora. It's for Wen Jing," she says. Aurora nods in understanding and disappointment.

As everything is set and it is time, Khai decides to go to Junjie's room where I am sleeping. Though the room is actually shared by Junjie and I since I move in. She leaves everyone in charge and informs them to keep an eye of the cake to make sure Pronto or Aurora will not eat the cake. She also informs them to not let anyone enter until the time has come. Then, she goes inside Junjie's home, which looks like a beautiful antic house, yet it does look like a palace.


	2. Chapter 2

Kord looks at the door that Khai goes inside Junjie's house.

"She thinks we are idiots," Kord tells Eli in dissatisfaction.

Eli chuckles and says, "She's wrong."

Eli bumps the cake and it almost falls! Luckily, Haru, Khai's boyfriend and one of the members of Team KHEI, and Trixie catch it and place the cake back on the table. Everyone stares at Eli and he smiles in embarrassment.

"Hey, we should wear our prom outfits before the party starts," Xia, another member in Team KHEI tells everyone.

"But we don't know what to wear," Swick says, referring to him and others since they don't have prom outfits.

An idea pops into Haru's head. "How about we use our Magical Scepters?" he suggests.

"That's a great idea, Haru!" Elke agrees. She and Team KHEI members take out their Magical Scepters. With a swing of their scepters, shimmering sparkles of red, purple, orange, white, green, yellow, sky blue, and deep pink colours appear. The magical shimmering sparkles surround Eli and their allies. Their clothes change from civilian and slinger outfits into prom and party outfits. Eli, Kord, Pronto, Tad, John or Twist, Junjie and Hamengku are now wearing light orange and light red tuxedo suits. Trixie wears an emerald green gown. Roza, the new member of Shane Gang and a robot girl, wears a pale violet tube cocktail dress with dark violet ribbon strapped around the dress' waist and pale violet knee-length boots and Nate, another new member of the Shane Gang, wore a fuchsia party dress, blue butterfly necklace around her neck, and black spike-heel boots. Axel, another new member of the Shane Gang, wore an amaranth purple tuxedo with gold neck tie and black charcoal shoes and Roy, another new member of the Shane Gang who is an alien human from another planet called Xoutov, wore a white polo shirt base layer, bronze vest underneath his polo shirt base layer, dark brown jeans with silver belt chain, and black charcoal shoes. Assyria, Axel's girlfriend, wears a periwinkle glitter cocktail dress and a pair of golden brown sandals. She still wears her navy purple magical watery jewel charm necklace as it allows her to transform back to her true self – a mermaid. Wen Wing, my male clone, wears a lavender polo shirt base layer, maroon vest underneath his polo shirt base layer, dark purple jeans with a black belt, and maroon shoes.

Hoshi wears a light violet party dress with white stars detailing on the skirt, which matches her name's meaning as 'star' in Japanese. Ha-Chan, the 13 years old girl born from a flower and now a member in Team KHEI wears a baby blue party dress and light blue sandals. Master Minami wears an ocean blue gown with sparkling pearls on the gown's skirt, which matches her love for water and oceans. Master Lian wears a gold gown with lotus flowers on the gown's skirt, which matches her name's meaning as 'lotus' in Mandarin. Megumi, the mother of Junjie and the twins, wore a beautiful silvery gown and silvery sandals. They are awed by their new appearances for the party. Other allies are wearing tuxedos and dresses in a variety of colours.

Sapphire, Eli's younger sister wears a shimmering blue cocktail dress, a light blue hairband with a white star attached on it, a heart shaped necklace around her neck and white sandals. Trixie's triplet brothers Louis, Kurt and Ren are wearing identical tuxedos, neck ties, rings and black shoes. The only difference is the colours of their tuxedos and neck ties: Louis' magenta and light red, Kurt's purple and dark purple, while Ren's green and light green.

Mason wears a gray tuxedo suit with a black neck tie and a pair of gray shoes, while Orleans wears a blue-magenta violet tuxedo suit with azure neck tie and a pair of black shoes. Patrice wears a bright green party dress and white heel boots, while Remy wears a pale pink cocktail dress and pale blue wedge shoes. They are all Kord's younger siblings.

Pronto's younger siblings consist of three boys and two girls. Charlotte wears a topaz yellow party dress with pale pink floral pattern and dark yellow high-heel shoes, while Ayane wears an amethyst violet party dress, a purple gemstone bracelet around her right wrist and pale purple high-heel boots. They are identical sisters. Xander wears a dark blue tuxedo suit, light blue neck tie, and gray wears a pine green tuxedo suit, green bow tie, and gray shoes. Zeno wears an ochre brown tuxedo suit, copper neck tie, and gray shoes. They are identical brothers.

Zoey wore a ruby red cocktail dress, gold sandals, and black cat comb pin at the back of her head, while Zara wore yellow-green cocktail, silver sandals, and white cat comb pin at the back of her head. They are identical twin sisters and younger sisters of John.

Terry wore a crimson tuxedo suit, white neck tie, and black shoes, while Isla wears a pink shimmering cocktail dress and white gladiator heels, while Derek wore a pale blue tuxedo suit, black neck tie, and black shoes, while Blair wears a bright purple shimmering cocktail dress and purple heel boots, while Rudy wore a green tuxedo suit, gray neck tie, and black shoes, and finally, Ashley wears an orange shimmering cocktail dress and orange heel sandals. They are the siblings of Tad and were created by Dr. Schnee.

The Guardians and Assistants of the Eastern Caverns are already in their traditional attires. The North Guardian, Anastasia wears a sarafan, a long, trapeze-shaped traditional Russian jumper dress. She also wears a headdress. The Assistant of the North Guardian, Chingis, wears a dark blue silk deel, a traditional clothing of the Mongolians. Durai, the South Guardian wears a light ivory Achkan or a Sherwani that is embroidered with gold, and a pair of tight fitting trousers called churidars. The Assistant of the South Guardian, Purya, wears a long shirt called tapālan and tightfitting trousers known as suruwā, which is the Newar clothing worn during festivals. Noritaka and Jeong-Sin, the Assistants of Junjie, who is also known as the East Guardian, are present. Noritaka wears a black kimono while Jeong-Sin wears a red Hanbok. The West Guardian, Wafi wears a white thawb with a headdress called the kaffiyeh. Zulkifli, the Southeast Guardian, is wearing a brown _Baju Melayu_ and _kain samping_ , completed with a _songkok_. The Assistants of the Southeast Guardian wear their own traditional clothing. The European minorities wear their clothes quite similar to the Victorian Era, which also includes Symothy.

The members of Team Phoenix have colourful outfits. Wei Cheng, Hai Chang, Yong Gang, Dong Song, Suxiong Jian, Elsu, Juro and Minowa wear grey, purple, orange, white, brown, scarlet, spring green, and reddish-brown tuxedos. Yu Juan, Zhong Fen, Kun Zhen, Rong Chun, Eara, Clovia, and Amada wear red, blue, yellow green, magenta, blue blizzard, and forest green dresses.

The Five Saints, Thalia Grace, Mary Magdalene and Blue Mother are present, along with my many allies during the 20 years of war like Annaliza, Cecilia, John, James, Kateri, Pedro, Hope and my doppelganger, Xian Wen. Michela and her family, her teammates and mentors have come from Belliggera. They are already in their own party outfits. Our slugs are all in human forms and are well-dressed. Oswold, Michela's favourite slug, and Obert, formerly known as the Goon, and the twin brother of Oswold (now in human form as 21 years old men) are with Glace, my Hiverphin and leader of the Kalt Gang (Kalt means 'cold' in German), who is also in her human form as an eighteen years old girl. Oswold looks much happier than in the past because he no longer has the ghoulish appearance after obtaining an unexpected cure months ago. And Obert was happier too since he was the Goon before and thanks to Flare and her friends, they purified him and he was free from the Emperor's curse by the power of Harmony. Burpy, the leader of the Chaleur Gang (Chaleur means 'heat' in French) is hanging out with Flare, Khai's favourite slug (now in human form) and the leader of the Limax Gang (Limax means 'slug' in Latin). The members of the Limax, Kalt and Chaleur Gangs are all in their popstar outfits.

After helping others out with their outfits, Team KHEI and Team JSMN change their slinger outfits into prom outfits, along with Xiu Juan, Mitsumi, Guang Guo, the twins, Yuuki, and Khai's four ancestors. Haru wears a red and black tuxedo suit with a dark red bow tie and a pair of black shoes; Elke wears a purple dress, a lily hairband on top of her head and dark magenta ankle boots; Ilys wears an orange dress with honeysuckle flowers detailing on the skirt and light orange ankle boots; Xia wears a short jet black dress with a white ribbon in the right side of the waist, a dark purple bow on top of her head which covers her white Faunus cat ears, and light purple sandals; Yamu wears a bright green tuxedo suit with a dark green bow tie and a pair of black shoes; Zak wears a topaz yellow tuxedo suit with a light yellow bow tie and a pair of jet black shoes; Falcon wears a cerulean tuxedo suit, indigo bow tie, and black shoes; Regina wears a pastel pink party dress with white outline on the edge of her party dress' skirt and black heel boots.

Ja Jung, the cousin of Junjie, wears a gold tuxedo suit with a silver neck tie and a pair of white shoes. Samantha, Ja Jung's wife, wears a beautiful lime green flowery gown, long green gloves and silver sandals. Their teammates, Marcuse, who wears a gray and brown tuxedo suit with a light gray neck tie and brown shoes; Nina, who wears a white Victorian-style mini-dress with white frills over matching panties, along with white boots, red socks, a pair of red-and-white fingerless gloves and a red-and-black gingham-patterned ascot tie as accessories. Xiu Juan, the daughter of Ja Jung and Samantha, wears a beautiful light red flowery gown, long dark red gloves and gold sandals. Mitsumiwore pastel green cocktail dress and green high heels. Guang Guowore an orange-red tuxedo suit and jet black shoes. Jie wears a sky blue tuxedo suit with light blue bow tie and a pair of black shoes, while Jia wears an ultra pink short dress, long dark pink gloves, pink sandals, and her hair is let loose and is tied up using a deep pink ribbon bow on top of her head. Yuuki wears a dark brown polo shirt with long sleeves and a light brown neck tie, a grey vest underneath his polo shirt, jet black jeans, and a pair of brown and white shoes.

Khai's ancestors, the Rey twins, Sky and Sakina Eraklyon Reyes, are cursed before but now they are set free by Khai and her teammates. Krystal Rey wears a beautiful shimmer blue dress with a ribbon behind the dress, a deep blue pearl necklace, a hot pink lipstick, dark blue eye shadow and aqua blue high heels. Her hair tied into a half bun and wears a blue diamond bracelet wrapped around her right wrist. Her twin sister, Celestia Rey wears a beautiful shimmer white dress with a ribbon behind, white pearl necklace, hot pink lipstick, dark blue eye shadow, and shocking pink high heels. Her hair tied into a half bun and wears a green diamond bracelet wrapped around her left wrist. Sky, Krystal's son wears a blue polo shirt with white necktie, a dark blue vest underneath his polo shirt, dark blue jeans and black shoes. Sakina, Celestia's daughter wears a pale green glittery tube cocktail, a silver butterfly necklace around her neck, and a pair of dark green ankle boots.


	3. Chapter 3

Meanwhile in Junjie's room, I am sleeping peacefully on the bed that Junjie and I share. Khai enters the room and sees me sleeping. She giggles as she quietly goes over the bed. She shakes my shoulder gently and it startles me a bit.

"Happy Birthday, Wen Jing," Khai says to me.

"To you…" I murmur in my sleep.

"It is your birthday," she corrected me.

"To me… It's my birthday," I murmur again in my sleep.

Khai giggles at my sleepy murmurs. "C'mon!" she shouts playfully as she removes the blanket that used to cover my body.

"Today is my birthday?" I ask as now I am fully awake.

Khai nods and says, "It's going to be perfect!"

I get off of the bed and asks Khai, "What will I wear for my birthday?"

Khai smiles and she takes out her Magical Scepter. With a swing, pink shimmering sparkles cover our outfits. Then, our outfits are replaced with prom outfits. Khai wears a beautiful shimmering pink dress with a bow ribbon behind the dress. Her angel wings pendant still remain. Her skirt has details of cherry blossom petals. Her black hair is tied up into a high ponytail with a pink bow ribbon, and she is wearing silver sandals. I wear a fiery red gown with silver shimmering sparkles on the gown's skirt. The magic from the scepter transforms my short hair to waist-length. I also wear a ruby bracelet on my right wrist, a tiara of larkspur flower on top of my head and gold sandals. I am awed by the sudden change of my appearance.

"Follow the red string!" Khai tells me. I am confused at first but I follow the red string anyway. Before starting the journey, I bring my red Magical Bag with me. Since it is my birthday, there must be a lot of gifts. I mean it: _a lot_. A change of my status has made me very well-known among the citizens of the Eastern Caverns. The Magical Bag will allow me to store everything, regardless of size. Moreover, the things inside the bag will not damage each other. Without it, I think I will need to reserve an extra room to store all of my birthday presents, and I must be extra cautious when placing them.

As Khai and I follow the red string, we find a laptop, which is a gift from my uncle. It is sitting on a bookshelf and I am delighted to have it. I put my laptop into my Magical Bag and follow the sting. The sting leads us to a hallway and there are two slugs, a Nightix and a Dreamix, are sitting on a small table. I am so pumped up to have two new slugs. The slugs are given by my two cousins. I name my female Nightix "Ignis", which means 'fire' or 'lightning' in Latin, and my male Dreamix "Mimpi", which means 'dreams' in Malay. As we continue to follow the string, we find art materials hidden inside the cabinet. The art materials are a box of colouring pencil, five sketch books, coloring pastels, five pencils, five new notebooks, and colorful paints. They are gifts from my three aunts. I am very grateful that my family give me the best gifts for my special birthday.

In the party, the Limax, Kalt, and Chaleur Gangs are practicing their performance for my birthday. When they are done, Eli and the others clap their hands and they are impressed by their performance.

"It's almost time for the party! Get ready before Wen Jing comes!" Flare tells everyone.

Meanwhile, Ha-Chan is looking at the cherry blossom trees in admiration. All of the sudden, she catches something coming from her left side. She looks at the small pond, which is next to the cherry blossom trees that she just looked at them. A small blue creature jumps out the pond and lands on the ground. Ha-Chan finds it very cute. She goes to the creature and greets it. It looks at her and it greets her back by saying "Mana!" It makes her love it more.

Ha-Chan takes the creature with her and goes to the heroes to show the creature to them. She comes up to them with the creature in her arms as everyone is making the last preparation. Master Lian and the people in the Eastern Caverns are curious to see the small blue creature. They have never seen it before. However, the Shane Gang instantly recognized the small blue creature.

"It's Mana the Manaphy!" Eli calls out.

Mana is happy to see the Shane Gang again. He jumps off of Ha-Chan's arms and onto Trixie's arms.

"How did you come all the way to the Eastern Caverns?" Eli asks Mana.

"I came here to see Wen Jing and her birthday!" Mana answers in human language and his voice is slightly deeper. His answer shocks them as he barely can speak human language when he is a baby, but now he has grew up after he starts to live in the sea.

"But who's watching over your home, Mana? You are the Prince of the Sea Temple, and your responsibility is to guard it and the seas," Kord questions him.

"My home is now guarded by the great guardian of the sea, Kyogre when I am away," he replies.

"Mana is a Manaphy, and they are extremely rare," Elke explains.

"Where did you guys get him?" Ilys asks the Shane Gang.

"We found Mana as an egg. Then, he hatched and he was imprinted to Wen Jing as his mother," John answers. That surprises everyone. "Then we took care of Mana that time and he began to grow older and speak his first words like 'Mana Wen Jing', 'Dada Junjie', 'Auntie Khai', 'Hana-Chan', 'Uncle Eli', 'Auntie Trixie', 'Uncle Kord', 'Pop Pronto', 'Uncle John', 'Uncle Falcon', 'Auntie Nate', 'Auntie Roza', 'Cousin Axel', 'Cousin Assyria', 'Uncle Yamu', 'Uncle Roy', and 'Cousin Zak'." Everyone is happy to hear that.

"Wen Jing was very embarrassed when she took care of him as a baby. She had no idea how to take care of him since he was imprinted to her," Eli laughs.

"Luckily Khai taught her how to take care of him and act like his mother," Trixie adds.

"That's so sweet," Master Minami Kaido compliments. "Indeed," Megumi added.

Meanwhile, Fairy, Khai's pet Nymphia, along with the others' pets are making a surprise for me. Fairy tells them all the ideas for me as a surprise gift in their language. Then Ying, Junjie's pet Kyukon, adds that they will surprise me before night. All the pets agree after making up the ideas they have.

Meanwhile, I am still following Khai and the red string. Along the journey, we find plenty of gifts from everyone, and each gift has a label of the givers. I place all the presents into my Magical bag since it has a lot of space. We find a Holo Caster given by Haru, a high-tech tablet given by Elke, a bouquet of larkspur from Ilys, a crystal blue bracelet from Xia, an emerald amulet given by Yamu, topaz earrings from Zak (though I do not have piercings but my Magical Scepter can do the trick for my ears!), dark blue scarf from Sky, a music box that plays a beautiful melody from Sakina, and the Rey twins give me a picture of all of my allies, including the slugs in their human forms and me.

I also receive special presents from the Guardians and Assistants of the Eastern Caverns. Anastasia gives me a nesting doll that is a version of me, which matches Junjie's nesting doll that he received from her last birthday. Chingis gives me the Doll of "Hatan", which is "Queen" and it is wearing a traditional Mongolian winter dress. This doll will complete with the Doll of "Noyon", which is "Lord" and it also wears a traditional Mongolian winter dress. These two dolls come in a pair. I remember that Junjie received the Doll of "Noyon" from Chingis last birthday. Durai's gift is a red-orange Pashmina Shawl, Purya's a rice paper portrait of me, Wafi's a gold choker and Jeong-Sin's a personalized Dojang, a red stamp with my name written in Korean. Noritaka's gift is an ukiyo-e print of the Phoenix and I. This is not the first time I see one from him. Junjie has an ukiyo-e print too from him as his last birthday's present, and it shows the Dragon and Junjie. In our house, an ukiyo-e print of the historic moment of the Emperor's defeat is hung on the living room.

The gift I receive from Zulkifli is a colourful _batik_. Since he has many Assistants and they are rich in diversity, I obtain many different presents from them: a nutmeg oil mainly for pain treatment, silver ringing anklets, a set of cup and saucer with my name written on them, a trendy scarf, a perfume and a bottle of olive oil. The picture of the Phoenix and I, is made into a porcelain figurine. It is also shown in a Venetian glass and a Delft Blue plate.

Each member of Team Phoenix gives me a gift that is different from each other. Wei Cheng's a comfortable red hat, Yu Juan's a Vinedrill Blossom hair pin, Zhong Fen's an improvised version of the Slug Energy Detector, Hai Chang's a Makobreaker which I then name it "Xiaosha" that means 'little shark' in Mandarin, Yong Gang's a hot-cold mini pack, Kun Zhen's a yellow crystals necklace (Khai says that they are not Auroris Crystals and Kun Zhen has told the Pyritor about it so he will not chase after me for the fake Auroris Crystals), Rong Chun's a mini bamboo tree, Dong Song's a portrait of me using the floral patterns of frost, Suxiong Jian's a pair of power gloves that gives me super strength, the Alexandersson twins are a pair of Hover Skates that can hover and give me super speed, and Clovia's a good luck charm with powerful magic.

Hitoshi, Hoshi's father, gives me a _Tenugui_ , a thin rectangular cotton wool with cherry blossoms patterns. Hamengku and the Outlaws give me a bouquet of Vinedrill Blossoms, while Drucilla and her uncle build a miniature version of my mecha-beast model for me. Hai Chang's family gives me a can of caviars. There are even more gifts such as a figurine of the fortune cat called maneki neko, a bonsai tree, a phoenix toy (I remember that Junjie has a dragon toy for his birthday), a giant teddy bear and a bouquet of cherry blossom from other people and I have to make a list of their names. After collecting, or should I mean _scavenging_ all the presents, I am very happy to have so many gifts from everyone. However, I realize that there is one important person who has not given me anything: Junjie.

"Hey, Khai. Where's Junjie's present?" I ask her.

"He said it is a secret. He will give it to you after the party," Khai replies. Her answer leaves me in wonder.

"It is time for your birthday, Wen Jing," she informs me.

We head towards the main entrance of Junjie's house. When I open the doors, everyone suddenly cheers and yells, "SURPRISE! Happy Birthday Wen Jing!" I am utterly surprised to see this. I am overjoyed to see that everyone, including Khai set up my birthday party.


	4. Chapter 4

As we begin the party, the Limax, Kalt, and Chaleur Gangs start up their performance and their song is "Shine like Rainbows".

Burpy: _Once upon a time  
_ _You came into my world and made the stars align  
_ Joo-Joo: _Now I can see the signs  
_ _You pick me up when I get down so I can shine_

Limax, Kalt, & Chaleur Gangs: _Shine like rainbows  
_ _Shine like rainbows  
_ _Shine like rainbows  
_ _Shine like rainbows_

Glace: _Friends, you are in my life  
_ _And you can count on me to be there by your side  
_ Flare: _And when the music comes alive  
_ _We sing our songs to lift us up so we can shine_

Limax, Kalt and Chaleur Gangs: _And the sound that we hear in our hearts  
_ _Makes a crescendo  
_ _And the light that ignites in the dark  
_ _It makes us all glow  
_ _And shine like rainbows  
_ _We shine like rainbows  
_ _Shine like rainbows  
_ _We shine like rainbows_

 _Together we stand  
_ _As the rain begins to fall  
_ _And holdin' our heads up high  
_ _As the sun shines through it all_

Then, they glow and achieve their Slug Up Forms! Their appearances remain the same, but their hair grow longer and they are tied into a low ponytail as if they are like their tails. Most of them also grow two antennas on the sides of their heads as their ears, while some of them like Windy and Mirage grow horns instead depending on their Slug Forms. The antennas or horns are similar to their Slug Forms. Some of them like Flare, Burpy, Joo-Joo, Windy and Cloudy achieve a pair of wings on their backs. The wings are only available for flying slugs. The people of the Eastern Caverns are captivated by the transformation. I, on the other hand, am enchanted by the lyrics of the song. It brings the meaning of life: why I was here in this world. I was born to become a great slugslinger, to lead an army, to recall Junjie, and to defeat the Emperor. My eyes are starting to fill with tears of joy. They sing wonderfully too and the people of Eastern Cavern also sing along with them.

People of Eastern Caverns: _And the sound that we hear in our hearts  
_ _Makes a crescendo  
_ _And the light that ignites in the dark  
_ _It makes us all glow  
_ _And shine like rainbows  
_ _We shine like rainbows  
_ _Shine like rainbows  
_ _We shine like rainbows_

Limax, Kalt, & Chaleur Gangs: _We shine like rainbows_

Once their song ends, everyone claps their hands. When the Limax, Kalt, and Chaleur Gangs leave the stage, Fairy suddenly appears on stage. Khai is surprised to see her on the stage when suddenly her ribbons extend longer and they are glowing in pink. Fairy jumps down from the stage and calls out the other pets. Sunlight and Moonlight, Jie's Eifie and Jia's Noctali, appear. Sunlight performs _Psybeam_ as she unleashes a powerful psychic beam from her red gem on her forehead while Moonlight performs _Shadow Ball_ as a dark energy ball is formed in front of his mouth and he launches it into the air. Their attacks collide together and causes an explosion, which results with sparkles to rain down from the sky. Everyone is left with wonder by this.

Then, Fairy begins to dance gracefully with her ribbons and everyone is amazed by her elegance. Ying also dances gracefully along with Fairy. Frey, my Rozureid performs _Petal Blizzard_ and multiple pink petals circle around his body. More petals are created when he spins his body as his dance move. The petals swirl around his body and they are blown to the people below the stage. They smile as they feel like the wind carry the cherry blossom petals towards them. Waterspout and Glacier, Elke's Aquana and Sky's Givrali, also join in the dance. Everyone is very happy to see the animals dancing.

Gen and Aiden, Krystal's Sirnight and Celestia's Erureido, use _Cosmic Power_ and the sky suddenly changes into outer space and we can see the faraway stars and planets. All of us are left in shock when we see the stars and planets. Although Eli, Khai, Michela and I are from the Surface, we have never seen the stars and planets clearly in real life. All we have seen are pictures. Fairy proceeds to perform _Moonblast_ and a pink sphere is formed in front of her mouth. She launches it into the cosmic sky and the sky suddenly changes into a pink sky with shimmering sparkles!

"THIS IS WICKED AWESOME!" Kord suddenly exclaims.

"I have never seen anything like it!" Trixie shouts in excitement.

Master Minami's Milokaross, Sea and Xiu Juan's Amaruruga, Dia appear the scene. Sea performs _Hydro Pump_ and she unleashes a powerful water beam from her mouth. Dia performs _Ice Beam_ and she unleashes a powerful light blue beam from her mouth. Their attacks fly up to the pink sky and change the sky into blue. Huge frozen bubbles also start to fall from the sky. Sunlight uses _Psychic_ to stop the frozen bubbles in mid-air. Andreas, Ja Jung's Absalom, performs _Razor Wind_ and his sickle-shaped horn, which is on the side of his head, glows in white. Blades of wind are shot out from his horn when Andreas swiftly moves his head. Andreas' attack hits the frozen bubbles. They shatter into pieces and become shard of sparkles as they rain down. Finally, Waterspout performs _Aurora Beam_ and she releases a powerful colourful icy beam from her mouth. The beam hits the blue sky and colourful aurora appear all over the Eastern Caverns!

It is the end of the pets' performances, Fairy and the other pets gather before the crowd. They bow down together and the aurora instantly disappear and the night sky returns to normal. Fairy extends her ribbons once more time and form into letters that read as "Happy Birthday Wen Jing". Everyone applauses to the pets' great performances and I am so pleased by our pets' great surprise gift for me.


	5. Chapter 5

After the performance, we start to play some games. First is the piñata. Jia plays first and she holds a long stick while she is blindfolded. When she swings the long stick, it hits Eli's head! Second is Louis and he tries to hit the piñata but he hits Siwck's head at the side! Third is Kurt but he hits John's hips instead, making him to be in great pain. Mitsumi treated his injury. Fourth is Ren. When he misses his target, the stick nearly hits Junjie but he quickly ducks down before it can hit him. Instead, the stick hits Kord! Drucilla has to tend to Kord's injury. Fifth is Sapphire. When she tries to hit the piñata, she suddenly lets go of the stick and it flies towards Hamengku, hitting his tummy! Zhong Fen goes to tend his injury. Sixth is Zoey. She tried to hit the piñata, she suddenly hit Roza's head which cause her head to knock away from her body! That shocked the people of Eastern Caverns! Thankful Rong Chun got her head and put it back on her body. Roza thank her. Finally, it is Jie's turn and he successfully hits the piñata!

There are no candies inside the piñata, but some beautiful gemstones, flower crowns and money. The gems are found by Dusty, Khai's Diggrix in the underground of Marinatopia. The flower crowns are made by Petal, Khai's Vinedrill. Many people, especially Pronto and Swick, rush to get the gemstones and money. In order not to cause a big mess in my party, Khai use her scepter to hover the gemstones and money in the air and give them to everyone who attends the party.

The next game is called "Bobbing for Apples". Eli, Haru, Yamu, Zak and Ha-Chan play together. They place their heads into a barrel filled with water and apples. They have to take out as many apples as possible with their mouths within the time limit. It is great fun and they are all wet! When the game was over, Mana the Manaphy suddenly appears in the apple barrel and gets three apples for himself, Junjie and I.

"Mana and Dada want some apples!" Mana exclaims in a cute way. Junjie and I giggle.

The third game is "Musical Chairs". There are 10 chairs and 11 players participate: Eli, Kord, Pronto, Junjie, John, Jie, Yuuki, Haru, Elke, Ilys and Trixie. Doc, who is in his human form, plays the violin for the music. When the music is playing, everyone walks around the chairs. Once the music stops, everyone scrambles on their feet to take the seats! When one of the players is taken out, we put slugs on a chair to show that this chair is now taken.

One by one, the chairs get occupied by more and more slugs, until there is only one chair left. And the winner is... Junjie! Well, he is perhaps that one person who has the fastest reaction time, well, most of the time. The prize he receives is a big swan doll, which reminds me of the stuffed panda bear that he has, while I have two mini panda bears.

"I think this swan doll belongs to you, my dear," Junjie tells me as he gives me the prize.

"Aww, that's so cute and sweet, darling. But how about we share?" I suggest.

"I like your suggestion," he replies.

After the games, everyone is enjoying the feast. Before the feast starts, Master Lian proposes a toast to me.

"I will like to propose a toast to our beloved heroine, the Phoenix – Wen Jing. A woman who never gives up of anything to fight for the truth. To aid the Eastern Champion to success. To liberate the Eastern Caverns from the Emperor's rule. May she have excellent health and great happiness. May all her speech with the Dragon be wise and just. Long live the Phoenix!" Master Lian announces and she holds her cup high, so does everyone. Out of the crowd, I see the spirits of Master Wu, Ja Jung's father, Master Shanai, Junjie's ancestors Yang, Yan and Yin, and my ancestors Li Qiang, Claire and Yi Shen. They smile and bow down to me in respect.

There is a wide variety of cuisines from all around the Eastern Caverns. Besides the Chinese, Japanese and Korean cuisines, there are Russian, Mongolian, Arabian, Indian, Malay, and a few Western cuisines. There are so many types of food that it looks like a buffet. Pronto almost gobbles up all of them because they are so delicious but Ilys manages to stop him. When the birthday cake is cut, everyone gets a fair share of the cake. Junjie and I eat together along with Khai, Haru, Ha-Chan, and Mana. I am very happy to see Mana again and he is having fun in the party. We even share our love for seafood together with Hai Chang and his former pirate family. I also help Ha-Chan and Mana to remember each other since they are childhood friends but they have forgotten it. Though I do feel disappointed when my family do not come because they are too busy. At least the joyful atmosphere brightens my spirit.

After the feast, people go for ice skating on the ice skating ring made by Annie as the classical music _Blue Danube_ is played. Some couples are dancing on the ice. Junjie even pulls me into the dance. Burpy and Flare are in their human forms and they are dancing too, so do Glace and Oswold. Though Oswold feels a little awkward as this is his first time ice skating and dancing.


	6. Chapter 6

When the party is over, the people of the Eastern Caverns leave Peach Blossom Spring Cavern while the Shane Gang and the others clean up the mess.

Junjie comes up to me and tells me, "Wen Jing, we need to talk in private."

"Oh, okay," I reply.

We go inside Junjie's house and we arrive at the high balcony. "Junjie, why do we need to talk in private?" I ask him.

"Wen Jing..." Junjie starts his speech, "when I was under control of the Goon, I had lost all the hope and courage to fight back. I thought the Eastern Caverns is doomed for sure... until one day, when I dreamed about you. I did not know that mysterious figure who appear in my dream is you, but she helped me to regain hope. In my heart, I keep thinking about her and waited to meet her. Years later, I met you – you, the one who can save me. Ying told me that you have feelings for me ever since you heard about me... and when you saw me as the Dark Slinger. When the Goon was going to make me to hurt you, or worse, I suddenly regained control and fought back. Although it was only for a while, I felt that it meant something powerful."

I tilt my head slightly to avoid his gaze. However, he moves my head to look at him.

"With the help of Ying's telepathy, I managed to contact you in the 99 Caverns and encouraged you to keep fighting and never give up. You have listened to my words. You really never give up. You train yourself so much more, from everything you have learned in the Eastern Caverns before you escaped, until you dare to take risks to learn something more."

"Like stealing Blakk's ghouls to study them?" I question him.

He chuckles and replies, "yes." I smile proudly.

"And then, we met again. I could not express how happy I was to see you alive. Though both of our meetings are not really good, at least we forgive each other and our relationship grow. Then, I taught you Slug Fu, and I have to say, you are the best Slug Fu Master that I could ever have, and meet too. Well, Eli, Khai and Michela are as good as you, but you are different. You are creative, always inventing new Slug Fu techniques to deal with enemies. Nobody can predict your moves very well. Your rule is that you never use the same Slug Fu move twice against the same enemy."

"Oh, you remember, huh?" I am impressed.

"I could not forget the wise words said by my beloved, honey."

I giggle. We have been using cute nicknames for each other ever since we start living together. We call each other "love", "beloved", "honey", "baby", "babe" and "sweetheart". Sometimes we playfully call each other "Dark Slinger", "Dark Girl", "Bad Boy", "Bad Girl", "Little Elf" and "Big Foot" in some occasions.

"But to be honest, I have underestimated your power. I am not warned that you will use... Dark Slug Fu against your enemies... against us. I feared about you. I feared that you will turn to the dark side... like Eas. Unlike Eli and Khai, you are complicated. You have light and dark inside you, and you can change sides anytime, especially when your emotions are unstable. But with the help of Khai, I am grateful that you can control it. And now... I see that you are no longer my student, but a master – a master who has surpassed all Slug Fu Masters. But you are modest, you still want to learn from me. That is how we become each other's teacher and student."

I chuckle in agreement.

"Our relationship is not always happy, we have the terrible moments. When you turned into a serpent, you attacked us and almost ate me. And then you ran away because you did not want to hurt anybody. We have some arguments before, the most heated one was related to my former view on Annie, and we almost broke up and the Eastern Caverns was almost destroyed. Sometimes you let out your outbursts and cry, and I feel guilty for hurting your feelings. But I do accept you being emotional, that is a trait of a great mother... like how Mana sees you."

"Come on, he also calls you Dada, sweetheart."

"Hehe, I know. But no matter what happens, we still stick together. Like when we were together through those horror adventures," We laugh lightly when he mentions that.

"But the greatest thing you have ever done is not that you have bring balance to Slug Fu and proven yourself as the Phoenix. It is when you defend me and still love me even though I was the Dark Slinger. Though…when Jie and Jia were almost killed by an Unstoppable Warrior, my mother suddenly appeared and saved my beloved twin siblings. I... never felt so happy to see her again."

"Yeah. Though your mother did punished Rong Chun due to her actions toward you. She clean up the whole damage of your home cavern. I felt bad for her."

"Hehe, yes. Though we fought so hard against the Emperor... we even sacrificed ourselves to push the Emperor down the Guardian Gate though he actually fell into the Delta Dimension thanks to the Rey twins. And after his defeat, we confessed to each other... and started to live together... like a family... that I love it more now."

"...Me too."

"I have been thinking about you all these time, Wen Jing. You are a very special lady. Not just any lady, but _my_ lady."

I blush at his words and says, "and you are my man." He grins.

He places his hand on my right cheek and says, "And you are beautiful – a beautiful lady of mine. Your strengths and flaws make you who you are. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you." I blush even more.

Junjie then takes out a small black box before he kneels down before me. He opens it and reveals a gold ring with a small ruby gemstone on the center of the ring and it shapes like a diamond.

"Wen Jing, will you marry me?" Junjie asks.

I am in shock. A few seconds later, I recover from my shock. "Yes! Yes, I will marry you!" I yell joyfully with tears filling in my eyes. Junjie smiles at my answer. He places the engagement ring on my ring finger of my right hand.

I am on cloud nine, and so does Junjie. He places his hand under my chin and leans close to me. Our lips are now connected, much to my surprise but I kiss him back. Though, we are unaware that we are being spied by Ying, who is hidden within the shadows. Ying is happy that her master is engaging with me and we are getting married soon. Ying uses her telepathy to announce the news to everyone in the party, leaving them in shell shock.

"What did I hear?" Eli asks his friends.

"Wen Jing and Junjie... are getting married?!" Trixie is shocked.

"Wen Jing and Junjie are getting married!" Jie and Jia cheer happily.

Meanwhile, on the balcony, our lips depart due to the need of air. "I thought you were going to say no since you plan to get married at least 25 years old," Junjie reminds me.

"Yes, but I also want to spend the rest of my life with you!" I explain.

"So you actually go against your rules?"

"Love knows no boundaries." He smiles warmly at me.

"Where did you get this?" I ask him about the ring.

"Jie and Jia brought the ring from the Wedding Ring Store from Marinatopia," he answers.

"Wow, it must be expensive."

"Do not worry, the Wedding Ring Store owner is kind and nice. He gave this special wedding ring to them for free because the twins are part of the guardians."

"Because Khai is a princess and anyone who is part of her team as new members or allies are considered part of the guardians?"

"Yes."

"But when did they get it for you?"

"Yesterday."

His reply hits me. Yesterday, I saw Junjie acting very quiet and awkward, like he was hiding something. Though I did not bother him. I realize that he was preparing to propose to me!

"You must be busy yesterday, huh?"

We let out chuckles. "Yes, I was nervous..."

"But at least we are together now."

Our eyes stare deep into each other and our lips curl into smiles.

"Oh, we better check on our friends who are cleaning the party," I remind Junjie.

"Oh right, we have to check on them," Junjie replies.

We went out of the balcony and out of the house. When we arrive, everyone suddenly cheers for us.

"Congratulations!" everyone shouts in joy, which startles us.

Jie and Jia run towards us. They take my right hand and see the ring wearing on my ring finger.

"She wears the ring! She accepts his proposal! We are going to have a sister-in-law!" Jie and Jia exclaim excitedly.

Kord immediately gives us a huge tight hug. When he lets go of us, Hamengku hugs Junjie while Zhong Fen hugs me. Anastasia gives me kisses on my cheeks instead. Megumi hugs Junjie and I and kisses us. Others give us blessing for our marriage.

Mana jumps into my arms and says, "Wen Jing and Junjie are going to be Mana and Dada!"

Junjie and I chuckle at his response. "Yes, soon," we answer him.

Khai is crying with tears of joy. "I am so happy for you, Wen Jing!" she cries out.

"Because I have found true love?" I ask her.

"Because you marry Junjie," she corrects me.

"Because Junjie is my true love," I answer.

"And you are my true love," Junjie adds.

"But wait, how does everyone know our engagement?" I ask Junjie but he shrugs.

 _I did._ A female voice says into our minds.

We turn our heads to see Ying smiling shyly towards us.

"Oh Ying, what a die-hard shipper of us," I laugh and so does Junjie.

"The Dragon and the Phoenix symbolize husband and wife, and both of you have made it," Master Lian tells us.

"Indeed. I am so pleased and proud of you both." Megumi said with a warmth smile.

"Yes, teacher and mother. When I first saw her, I know she will be my wife and mother of my future children," Junjie replies.

"Aww, and I know that you will be my husband and father of my future children when I first met you," I add.

"So... when will the wedding be?" Eli asks playfully.

"Next two months," Junjie answers.

"What?! So soon?!" Trixie and Yu Juan are utterly shocked.

"Well... we can't wait to start our new lives together," I explain and blush.

"But how are you going to tell your family about this?" Xian Wen questions me.

"I will talk to them. They cannot say no to the Eastern Champion. I will give honour to her, her family and our future children," Junjie answers.

"Honour is one thing, but love is everything," I comment.

"I am the luckiest man alive because you accept me," Junjie says to me and hugs me, his fiancé, his future wife.

"And I am the luckiest woman alive because you accept me," I say back to him and hug him back, my fiancé, my future husband.


End file.
